[nicholassmith]

The interesting thing is this can actually be reapplied to something even more important than getting a seat on the tube, pub queues.

Pub queues have similar social dynamics, as the queue is a lie and it works much the same way (unless the bar staff are very, very good at tracking punters) as the seat-acquision game. You're looking for the specific formations of people who've ordered or are just ordering, where the densest clusters are and so on, but you are not alone. There's another thirsty, strategy minded drinker taking the same tactics, game on.